When I retired back in 2020, one of my co-workers gave me this orchid.
I know nothing about orchids, but somehow, it has made it to year 4.
My biggest worry each year, is when we travel for 2 weeks.
I stick it in water in the sink and pray for it.
Thankfully, summer is not its big growing season, this time of year, is.
I have no idea how many more years it has, but I have enjoyed it so far.
Our long-time neighbor, who raised his children right across the street from us, passed away a week ago.
Any time we needed help with something, he was always ready to lend a hand.
He owned a plumbing company, which his wife is still in charge of.
He loved cars and motorcycles, and belonged to car clubs.
What amazed me, was the amount of people who turned up at his funeral, on Sunday.
We got there about half an hour before the ceremony, and the line was down to Rinaldi Street.
We were lucky that our other neighbor, pulled us into the line, so we did not have to go all the way to the end.
We never did get past the sign-in book, so we stood in the atrium, and listened to the ceremony from there.
His daughter thinks upwards of 300 people were there. I estimated around 200. Still, standing room only. It was amazing.
All the custom cars were all over the roadways in the cemeterey, it was a beautiful thing to see.
Goodbye Jeff, you will be missed.
My Water Post For Today.
The Transamerica Pyramid in Downtown San Francisco dominates the waterfront area where our ship was anchored, back in 2020.
It has always been such an unusual building, and an immediate indicatation of what city you are in.
Similar to what the Empire State Building does for New York.
It definitely gives the waterfront a kick @ss view, that's for sure. :-)
I hope you enjoy.
I am the morning DJ at W*O*L*D.
Those words start one of Harry Chapin's songs.
I have a Broadcast friend who used to work for the traffic system I used, to keep our channels on the air.
We both have moved on in our lives, but he posted a website on his Facebook page, that he created about his father, JC Connors.
The whole website is HERE, if you would like to read the entire entry.
I don't know if he only had part of it up at the time I read it, or I ran out of time, because I did not realize that my friend's father was the model for Harry Chapin's song, W*O*L*D.
It's a fascinating read, and worth your time.
As to the song, to refresh your memory...here are the lyrics.
Hello honey, it's me
What did you think when you heard me back on the radio?
What did the kids say when they knew it was their long lost daddy-o?
Remember how we listened to the radio
And i said 'that's the place to be
And how i got the job as an FM jock the day you married me?
It was two kids and i was was into AM rock
But i just had to run around
It's been eight years since i left you babe
Let me tell you 'bout what's gone down
I am the morning dj on w*o*l*d
Playing all the hits for you wherever you may be
The bright good-morning voice who's heard but never seen
Feeling all of forty-five going on fifteen
The drinking i did on my last big gig it made my voice go low
They said that they liked the young sound when they let me go
So i drifted on down to Tulsa,
Oklahoma to do me a late night talk show
Now i've worked my way down home again, via Boise, Idaho
That's how this business goes
I am the morning dj on w*o*l*d
Playing all the hits for you wherever you may be
The bright good-morning voice who's heard but never seen
Feeling all of forty-five going on fifteen
I've been making extra money playing high school sock hops
I'm a big time guest mc
You should hear me talking to the little children
And listen what they say to me
I got a spot on the top of my head, just begging for a new toupee
Theres a tyre around my gut from sitting
But they're never gonna go away
Sometimes i get this crazy dream
That i just take off in my car
But you can travel on ten thousand miles and still stay where you are
I've been thinking that i should stop diskc jockeying
And start that record store
Maybe i could settle down if you'ld take me back once more
Ok honey, i see
I guess he's better than me
Sure, old girl, i understand
You don't have to worry, i'm such a happy man
W*o*l*d, w*o*l*d, w*o*l, w*o*l, w*o*l*d*d*d
I am the morning dj on w*o*l*d
Playing all the hits for you wherever you may be
The bright good morning voice who's heard but never seen
Feeling all of forty-five, going on fifteen
I am the morning dj on w*o*l*d
I was watching the Tucson Virtual Railfan camera Thursday evening.
The camera followed an Amtrak staff member from the train, who was carrying red and white flowers in his hands.
He went to the memorial of the fallen DEA agent, Mike Garbo, that is on the fence at Tucson.
He left the flowers there, which I thought was very thoughtful of him.
Being they were just finishing up the final dinner in the dining car, maybe he thought it was appropriate to give them a second life, for the DEA agent.
It was a very touching thing to witness.
Last month cake and frosting were on sale, so I bought some, to make cupcakes for my birthday.
I baked them in the morning, and was frosting them, when there was a knock on the door.
My sister-in-law sent me edible arrangements (now known as edible) to me.
Two trays of cookies, and a small cheesecake. My Husband loves cookies, so he is set.
Half my cupcakes now live in the freezer, so we will eat them as we see fit over the next several weeks.
It's my birthday! Happy Birthday to me.
It has been a week with Makenna, she has decided to sit up on my chair with me. No idea where this came from, but I put up with it.
Minus that, We do seem to be making progress, and that is a good thing.
Not real happy with the fluid IV, but we have managed it every day.
Hopefully, we can back off from it, as she recovers.
She is eating very well, so that is also a very good sign.
Keep going, little girl.
We had rain all weekend.
This was the sunset on Monday night.
I love the clouds off to the west, and of course, the colors.
It is always so wonderful to see, as the weather finally moves out.
Temps are going to go up a little bit, for the remainder of the week. Yay!
Let's take a trip on the Southwest Chief.
Chicago, IL - Union Station (CHI)
Naperville, IL (NPV)
Mendota, IL (MDT)
Princeton, IL (PCT)
Galesburg, IL (GBB)
Fort Madison, IA (FMD)
La Plata, MO (LAP)
Kansas City, MO - Union Station (KCY)
Lawrence, KS (LRC)
Topeka, KS (TOP)
Newton, KS (NEW)
Hutchinson, KS (HUT)
Dodge City, KS (DDG)
Garden City, KS (GCK)
Lamar, CO (LMR)
La Junta, CO (LAJ)
Trinidad, CO (TRI)
Raton, NM (RAT)
Las Vegas, NM (LSV)
Lamy, NM (LMY)
Albuquerque, NM (ABQ)
Gallup, NM (GLP)
Winslow, AZ (WLO)
Flagstaff, AZ - Amtrak Station (FLG)
Williams, AZ (Closed)
Note: There is no stop at Williams, Arizona. You get off the train at Flagstaff, and board a bus that takes you to Williams, AZ. The Grand Canyon Railroad will bring you right to the rim of the Canyon. You must make reservations in advance, to make that bus connection. (Bus is over on the far left of the photo)
Kingman, AZ (KNG)
Needles, CA (NDL)
Barstow, CA - Harvey House Railroad Depot (BAR)
Victorville, CA - Amtrak Station (VRV)
San Bernardino, CA (SNB)
Riverside, CA (RIV)
Fullerton, CA (FUL)
Los Angeles, CA - Union Station (LAX)
Between my Husband and myself, we covered all but two stations. Hutchinson, Kansas, and Garden City, Kansas. So you get Google Images of those two. His images are: Naperville, Newton, Kingman, and Lamar. The rest, are mine, minus a Virtual Railfan camera image of Fort Madison, which I loved and used instead of the million images I have.
I hope you enjoyed the journey.
My Water Post For Today.
Back to May of 2022, and our trip across the west.
The Rio Grande River in the daylight, just south of Albuquerque, New Mexico.
It was nice to see it, since last year when we passed this same place, it was after dark.
Also, it is good to see it with lots of water, since New Mexico is normally a very dry state.
I hope you enjoy.
Pusheen always comes through!
Every year I get reminded that my birthday is coming up, because I subscribe to Facebook's Pusheen page.
It always makes me smile when I see it 5 days before my actual birthdate.
I have always been glad I am one of the water signs, along with my Sister.
Welcome to the New Year (which is filled with birthdays in my family).
After I posted that lovely photo of Makenna sleeping by me, I realized that she was eating less and less.
My sister and brother-in-law said to call the vet, and so I did.
We brought her in on Thursday, and they took blood for testing.
Plus, she is drinking lots of water, but the kidney is sending it right back out.
Minus the new drugs, and feed, she now will get water placed under her fur once a day.
I am hoping when she stabilizes, we will not have to do that anymore.
For now, we become vet assistants.
The one thing that never fails is the extreme beauty of the Desert Botanical Garden in Phoenix.
Way in the back, is a cafe with some beautiful cacti. It is well worth the walk.
Quail visited with us, as we sat at the tables, admiring everything.
A wonderful experience, no matter how often we visit it.
Better than the zoo next door, IMHO.
This is Barstow Station on 11/21/23.
We passed by it, on our way home,
We had no idea that the Internet connection through Harvey House, would fail shortly thereafter.
We have had no video coming from there, since then.
We do manage to catch the Southwest Chief #4 running at full speed at Hesperia, but that is not nearly enough.
I keep hoping the camera turns up again, soon.
She makes me happy whenever she drops by my chair.
Some days my Husband goes off to gym, and I stay home.
She comes over to keep me company, and make sure I am not leaving her.
I love the fact that her tail is wrapped around her body.
So cute!
My Son's house had some problems over the weekend.
The sister of one of the occupants had been staying with them for the past month.
Her school in Missouri came back from winter break, this week.
She flew out of Detroit on Friday morning, with a connecting flight in Chicago.
She got caught in the bad weather, in Chicago, and her local airport in Missouri has been closed.
So she stayed in a hotel for 2 days, right by O'hare airport.
On Sunday, we were talking to my Son, and all of a sudden his phone rings.
He took the call from her, and signed off with us shortly after (photo above), since she asked him to book her back to Detroit.
We knew he got her a flight late night, but not what airline it was. I figured it out and we tracked her back to her sister and my Son.
She will work remotely, at least for this week, in Detroit. If the weather gets better, they will try to get her back to campus, again.
I am glad they have her safe.
My Water Post For Today.
My Son sent us a selfie of him at this park.
I loved the frozen water, and cut him out, for the water post.
A beautiful trail (It might be Nature Discovery Trail, but I am not sure).
There are so many places in his area of the world, to walk around.
I hope you enjoy.
